Real estate blues

So, we put in an offer on a bigger house in our neighborhood on Sunday afternoon, after deciding over lunch on Saturday to take the plunge. We started scrambling to put our stuff in storage and suffice to say that this week has been very stressful and overwhelming while Matt scrambles at work, then comes home and scrambles on house stuff while I try to stay on top of my dissertation, manage my exhaustion and short fuse, and wrangle Harry, who is … challenging … these days.

Anyhoo, we got a verbal counteroffer on Tuesday (“we want more money and to close in 45 days”). The written offer came yesterday: they declined our offer, but invited us to resubmit a new offer with some new terms. Apparently, they were pissed that we offered them $240K (making it very clear that this was the starting point and that we were very willing to negotiate), which was $9,900 less than their list price. They had just lowered their asking price from $269,900 (where it sat on the market for 99 days) to $249,900 and were offended that we didn’t offer them something closer to that original list price (que?!?!?!). Apparently, $249,900 is their rock-bottom price. Why they listed it at that is beyond me, but their realtor is newly minted and eager to get their house sold.

So, they want full asking price, $2,500 in earnest money, and to close in 45 days. That means we have to get our house on the market and SOLD within 45 days. Now, I either want to embiggen our house or get a bigger one before Rex Boy is born, but on these terms? Not so much. I kind of want to tell them to grow up and list their house at a price that they’d be comfortable working down from, rather than acting like petulant children when they get their FIRST and ONLY offer in FOUR MONTHS in a SHITTY MARKET.

I mean, we’re not the desperate ones here. I’m not sure why they would act like this in a buyer’s market. I think it’s greed, but Matt thinks it’s naivety. Whatever. They can take their extra 600 square feet, adorable kitchen, livable backyard with covered porch and tire swing and shove it, as far as I’m concerned.